


Aftermath

by Neon_Zephyr



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comic)
Genre: AU, Gen, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-23
Updated: 2015-06-23
Packaged: 2018-04-05 18:50:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4191039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neon_Zephyr/pseuds/Neon_Zephyr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a rough, but victorious fight against the Legion, Knuckles, the Chaotix, and the Brotherhood return to Haven to recover and plan their next moves. Prompt fill.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

> This was a prompt ordered by MightyRay last summer. 
> 
> The Chaotix's personalities were described by the prompt as being more like the games. Spectre is the oldest living Guardian in this, too. Ray was seriously injured in the fight to defeat Kragok (if temporarily). The rest of the details given in the summary should be enough for anyone vaguely familiar with the old Archie 'Verse to get what's going on.

The ring spun, shrinking as the portal held within closed again. The red Echidna grabbed it before it could fall to the floor. He turned slightly to witness his darker-furred ancestor access a panel to initiate a total lockdown. The main door to Haven slammed shut in front of him, the metal panels locking neatly into place.

Knuckles frowned. He glanced at the Chaotix members that hadn’t already gone further into Haven. Espio stood against one wall, still holding a green Chaos Emerald; an anxious Mighty stood next to Heavy, who was holding the poorly-bandaged, still form of Ray.

_That could have gone worse,_ he admitted to himself, _but, it_ should _have gone_ better _._

“Get Ray to the Medical Ward immediately,” Sojourner said calmly to Heavy.

Before the robot could carry the injured Flying Squirrel off, Mighty took him in his arms and began to run down the hall.

“That is certainly the fastest run I’ve ever witnessed for an Armadillo,” Sabre noted aloud, rubbing his head gingerly.

“Worry has a tendency to enhance our abilities.” Thunderhawk leaned back against the wall, pressing his hand against a nasty gash on his cheek.

“You should probably have your injuries looked at, too,” Sojourner said to his descendants.

“If nothing else,” The purple Echidna chuckled as he started down after Mighty, “I’ll go make sure the little guy’s okay.”

“Sabre.”

“I shall supervise; it wouldn’t do well if Thunderhawk broke our medical equipment,” Sabre said with a nod, walking after his great-grandfather.

Sojourner sighed, and turned back to Spectre.

“Father, you should join—”

“Have Jenna-Lu set up a communication link to EST immediately,” the helmeted black Echidna cut off his son’s request, his cloak flowing behind him as he trudged down the hallway.

“Father,” Sojourner said with another sigh. He turned to Knuckles. “You and Heavy should meet back up with your friends. Espio,” he turned to the purple Chameleon, “you should bring the Emerald and come with me to Surveillance.” The Echidna led Espio down the hall, leaving his youngest descendant and the robot alone.

“Guardian Knuckles,” Heavy’s mechanical voice sounded. “The probability that Master Ray will make a full and quick recovery is high, estimated at about—”

“Why don’t you go on ahead?” Knuckles gave the robot a light pat on the head. “I’m sure that Bomb is waiting for you. I need to… take care of something.”

“Yes, sir.” Heavy gave an awkward bow, before waddling down the hallway.

Knuckles twirled the Warp Ring in his hand for a long moment. _It’s only a few seconds, but…._ With a sigh, he tossed it up, letting the Ring open a portal to another area of Haven. He walked through it, emerging in front of a room with a wide window permitting one to look in to see the medical bay. Standing in front of the window, watching as the machinery in the bay began its operation, were a pink, female Echidna and a green, muscular male Crocodile. Julie-Su’s hair had its usual lavender highlights marred by black singe marks, and she bore large bandages on nearly her entire right arm and the left side of her face. Vector seemed less injured at first glance, but a second look revealed that his left arm was in a sling as well as heavily bandaged.

“Hey,” Knuckles said, as he closed the Warp Ring behind him. “You guys look like heck.”

“Knuckles?” Julie-Su turned slightly to look at him. “Oh, these?” She pointed to her bandaged face. “Don’t worry about it. I’m not even hurt that much; Jenna-Lu’s just being overly-cautious.”

“Not that I blame her.” Vector did not alter his gaze from the window. “Kragok’s Emerald blasts were nasty, I give him that. We certainly _looked_ much worse than we felt when we first got in.”

“It was worth it,” Julie-Su insisted with a short laugh. “I got a chance to knock Kommissar down a few times. That’s always a good thing.”

“I just hope it was worth Ray getting hurt. Again.” Vector placed a hand on the window’s glass.

“That’s Ray in there?” Knuckles asked, walking over to get a better look. Thunderhawk and Sabre were blocking his view of the figure on the operating table, under the series of mechanical arms and tools. _How did they beat me here?_ Knuckles raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah.” Julie-Su nodded. “They just started. He looks really bad.”

“He reopened his wounds when he took on Kragok by himself,” Knuckles explained, “and he took a nasty blast to his face, too.”

“I didn’t get a good look,” Julie-Su said, “but I thought Spectre said he just got his cheek clipped.”

“You saw those blasts from Kragok’s Emerald,” Knuckles reminded her. “That much concentrated Chaos Energy….” He shook his head.

“But, Ray’s a tough little guy.” Julie-Su turned back to the window. “He’ll pull through; he always does.” She placed a hand on the glass. “He _has_ to.”

Knuckles walked over to her side, opposite of Vector. He looked into the medical bay through the window, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder.

“He will, Jules. He will.”

 

…

 

“That’s not good enough!” Spectre snarled at the screen.

“I’m sorry, Guardian Spectre,” the uniformed Echidna said in a calm, though strained tone. “But, with Constable Remington’s injuries, he’s simply not fit for duty. Neither are half of the officers who fought alongside him in your battle with the Legion. We simply do not have the manpower to go after Kragok and the Dark Legion right now; we need to regroup.”

“Every minute _we_ spend regrouping is a minute our enemy is, too!” Spectre insisted, standing up from his chair. Pain jolted up his body from his knees, but he refused to show any sign of wear.

“Those are my orders, Guardian.” The EST officer didn’t change her tone or expression. “The Brotherhood does not command the EST; until such a time as our Constable can give new orders, we must obey the ones we have. I sincerely hope that the Brotherhood and its allies make a full recovery. Goodbye, Guardian.”

The screen turned to static as the officer ended the transmission.

Spectre cursed bitterly under his breath.

“Anger will not solve things, father.” Sojourner looked up from where he sat, at the far end of the table, where the living members of the Brotherhood often gathered.

“They’re cowards,” Spectre snarled again. “They can’t even think on their own! We have the Emerald, now, and the Legion is likely disorientated from their defeat. Now’s the time to attack; we can at least end Kragok!”

“Your head’s still buzzing with adrenaline from the battle,” Sojourner said. “Once you calm down and really think about it, you’ll understand that charging after the Legion—even if they’re still suffering from their technical defeat—when we’re still at least somewhat battered ourselves is, to put it simply, a really bad idea.”

“But—!”

“No, father.”

Spectre looked at his son for a long moment. Then, his expression calmed and he slowly slunk back into his own chair. He sighed, before scowling.

“You’re right,” he admitted quietly.

There was another long silence, eventually broken by a third figure flickering into view.

“So,” Espio spoke up, “what should we do with this?” The purple Chameleon tossed the green Chaos Emerald up and down a few times.

Sojourner raised a hand, which glowed green. The Emerald began to glow in the same manner, before it floated up out of Espio’s grasp and into the Guardian’s.

“First,” he said with a chuckle, “we don’t play with it as if it were a toy ball.” He placed the Emerald on the table in front of him. “But, beyond that, it’s something the Brotherhood will have to decide together.”

“We _should_ use it as the power source that it is,” Spectre said. “We should develop weapons that are powered by it; if the Legion could develop a crude weapon as powerful as Kragok’s cannon, I expect we could develop something far more civilized. And far more potent.”

“Always like you, Spectre,” Thunderhawk announced his arrival with a level tone, “to think of war first. Could we not simply use the Emerald’s power to benefit the lives of our people? To improve their standard of living?”

“Are you saying that the eradication of the Dark Legion _wouldn’t_ better the lives of everyone in Echidnapolis?” Spectre glared at his descendant. “On Mobius?”

“Do we use the Master Emerald for war?” Thunderhawk retorted. “Or, do you not agree that it is better served to keep the Island afloat? That it is better than it falling into the ocean—or worse, onto land and possibly other societies?”

“This is _not_ the Master Emerald we are discussing, though!” Spectre snapped. “ _This_ Emerald is not required for a more immediate purpose! We can use it without having to inconvenience any innocents!”

“And _not_ using it to help our people _isn’t_ an inconvenience?” Thunderhawk kept his voice calm. “Imagine what we could accomplish if we used it for medical purposes?”

“Didn’t Locke use the Chaos Emerald on himself and his unhatched son to genetically alter him?” Espio cut in. When the Guardians hesitated, looking back and forth at each other, the Chameleon continued. “And, hasn’t that _already_ caused just as much strife for Knuckles as it has benefits? To make a decision on the Emerald’s use on a whim like this, no matter which way you chose, would be simply that: made on a whim.”

“You insolent _child!_ ” Spectre growled. “The Brotherhood of the Guardians does _not_ act upon mere whims! We are not a pack of whelps without restraint or reason!”

“Clearly,” Sojourner said with a scoff.

“I did not ask for your input!” Spectre snapped at his son.

“The last time I checked,” Sojourner’s tone cracked, showing the limits of his patience, “I have not been a child for _decades_ , nor do I need _your_ permission to speak!”

“I am still—!”

“That. Is. _Enough!_ ” A female voice signified the arrival of a new figure.

The voice belonged to an Echidna, her red fur greying slightly in various areas, primarily her extremities. She wore a simple, beaten brown dress and sandals, with a faded green poncho over it, and her bangs lay neatly in a framing manner against her face. She used a simple, wooden walking stick for balance, and her tired green eyes were narrowed in frustration.

“Jenna-Lu!” Thunderhawk acknowledged Sabre’s wife.

“And me!” A young Bee said from diagonally behind the female Echidna. Saffron wore her usual pink dress and shoes, and was carrying a basket, the top covered with a red cloth.

“You claim to be above whim, to think and act with, what did you call it? Restraint and reason.” Jenna-Lu walked up to Spectre. “And yet you speak rashly, out of nothing but your anger and frustration. I did not know that the eldest living Guardian allowed himself to act with such hypocrisy.” She raised her walking staff, pointing the end directly at Spectre’s nose. “If anyone is an insolent child here, Spectre, it is you! You should be deeply ashamed at yourself; you are the elder here, and this is how you act, how you treat your son and grandson!” She lowered her stick, using it for balance again. “It’s pathetic, and it’s beneath all of us here, Brotherhood or otherwise.”

Spectre opened his mouth for a bitter retort, but couldn’t find his voice under Jenna’s harsh gaze. He eventually sighed, before slinking back further into his chair. He pulled off his helmet and half-heartedly tossed it on the table. He pointedly looked away from Jenna, trying to hide his pout.

Thunderhawk allowed himself a quiet chuckle.

“Well, then,” Sojourner said, “I guess we’ll all have to discuss this before we make a decision.” He looked at Espio. “The Chaotix included; they risked their lives just as much as we did in the battle, and it was the near-sacrifice and severe injury of one of theirs that allowed us our technical victory in the first place.”

“We would greatly appreciate the inclusion.” Espio gave a polite nod. He looked at Saffron. “How’s Charmy?”

“Tired,” Saffron said, handing Espio the basket. “He went to bed early, but asked me to give you this.”

Espio moved the cloth, revealing the basket’s contents.

Espio smiled slightly.

“I shall have to thank him when he wakes up.”

“Thank who when he wakes up?” Knuckles asked as he walked in, Vector and Julie-Su close behind. Heavy and Bomb followed a bit further behind _them_.

“Ah, the youngest of our Brotherhood joins us at last,” Sojourner said cheerfully. “How is young Ray holding up?”

“He will survive,” Sabre said as he emerged from the shadows behind them. “He may even be walking around again, come morning.” He walked to his seat at the table, slowly taking it. He sighed deeply. Jenna-Lu took the seat next to his, resulting in a tired smile from her husband. “Mighty stayed behind; wouldn’t surprise me if the boy slept in medical tonight.”

“That’s definitely Mighty.” Espio smiled. He grabbed one of the apples from the basket, tossing it up in the air before snapping his tongue to grab and pull it into his mouth.

“Regardless,” Sojourner said, “we can still have a preliminary discussion on ideas of how to use—or otherwise deal with—the Chaos Emerald. The Legion _knows_ we have it, so we probably can’t just lock it away in the vaults, not for very long.”

“No, I agree.” Knuckles took a seat first, inspiring the others to join him in scattered order, except for Heavy and Bomb, who elected to remain standing against the wall. “There’s no way that the Legion will just sit on that information, not for long.”

“Nope,” Julie-Su said, shaking her head. “Either they’ll try to get it back, or use the fact that we have it against us. And, there’s no way they’ll believe us if we try to lie about still having it.”

“On that, I can most certainly agree,” Spectre admitted.

“Well,” Sojourner started, “two options we’ve already started to discuss are using the Emerald to power weaponry against the Legion, and using it as an energy source to instead benefit the people of Echidnapolis.”

“We can also use it for our own power source,” Sabre suggested. “We could power a secondary base, or use it to power our own research.”

“Or, we can use it to heighten our connection to the Chaos Force,” Knuckles offered. His ancestors all turned to look at him. “It may be easier for you, now, but I’m still learning, and the one thing I know about Chaos Energy is that I can always be better at tapping into it.”

“Yeah!” Vector nodded sharply. “We can also use it to charge the Warp Ring. It may not be as powerful as the Master Emerald, but—since the Chaos Emeralds are basically just lesser versions of the Master one—it’ll probably allow us to move further across Mobius much more easily.”

“That is a logical conclusion, yes.” Espio snapped another apple into his mouth.

“Guardian Knuckles,” Heavy spoke up. “May we suggest the possibility of using the Emerald to assist those we recently evacuated during the Legion attack? They would greatly appreciate any assistance, especially now that they are refugees.” The robot looked at Bomb, who nodded feverously in support of its companion.

“That would also be a worthy use.” Sabre frowned slightly, staring at the Emerald on the table.

“How about using it to heal the injured?” A new voice piped up from the hallway. “And for the record, I’m not talking about myself; I’m sure I’ll be just fine.”

“Ray!” Knuckles exclaimed. The young Flying Squirrel was standing in the entryway, heavily bandaged, with Mighty’s arm wrapped around his shoulder for support. “You shouldn’t be—!”

“I tried to stop him,” Mighty said. “But the instant he regained consciousness, he insisted on coming down here. Eventually, I had to agree to help him; he’d have just hurt himself trying to come down on his own.”

“I just…” Ray hesitated. “You were right, Jenna-Lu. I shouldn’t have rushed into that fight. I could have…I mean….” He trailed off.

“No one blames you, son,” Jenna-Lu said warmly. “It was a very brave thing you did, risking your life for your friends.”

“Yeah,” Knuckles agreed. “We wouldn’t have brought down Kragok without you.”

Ray blinked at him for a moment, before exchanging a look with Mighty. The two of them smiled. The Armadillo then continued to help the Flying Squirrel, as they both took their seats at the table.

A screen lit up behind Spectre, who turned to look at it.

“It’s a call from the Acorn Monarchy.” He identified the symbol on the screen. “Maybe they heard about our fight?”

“That’s fast,” Julie-Su muttered.

“What do we tell them?” Thunderhawk mused aloud. “We can’t let them think that Kragok still has the Emerald; they’d waste time and resources trying to recover it themselves.”

Knuckles’s face lit up.

“Tell them we lost it in the sea, shortly after our retreat.”

“What?” Sabre looked at his grandson. “You’re suggesting we outright lie to King Acorn?”

“As much as I want to trust him and the others, yeah.” Knuckles looked at the Emerald. “That way, if the information leaks, Kragok and the Legion might believe it. And they’ll waste time trying to recover it.”

“And, with how big the ocean is,” Ray added, “who knows how long it’ll take for them to give up.”

“Maybe long enough for us to decide how to use it ourselves.” Knuckles nodded.

“I suppose it’s a good enough idea,” Spectre sighed, putting his helmet back on. “For now.”

The black Echidna stood up and walked over to the monitor. He pressed a button, and a young Squirrel’s face appeared on screen.

“Greetings, Guardians. I do hope you have good news.”


End file.
